A Virginia realtor and Christian minister has been found guilty by an ethics panel after he quoted Bible verses on social media.
Wilson Fauber, 70, a longtime realtor with over four decades in the industry, was found in violation of National Association of Realtors' (NAR) Code of Ethics, which prohibits realtors from using "harassing speech, hate speech, epithets, or slurs" related to "race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial status, national origin, sexual orientation or gender identity."
The posts in question, which were made years before the NAR’s adoption of the rule in 2020, included Fauber’s views on marriage and human sexuality according to traditional Christian teachings, attorneys said.
In a statement released Thursday through his attorneys at the Founding Freedoms Law Center (FFLC), Fauber said: “In 44 years as a realtor, I have loved and served all people. Regularly, I hear from other faith-based realtors that live in fear of being similarly prosecuted for their faith, and potentially losing their livelihoods, if they don't hide their faith well enough."
The controversy began when Fauber ran for Staunton City Council in 2023. Opponents of his campaign uncovered several social media posts from years earlier, including a 2015 post in which Fauber shared his Christian views on marriage, particularly in response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s consideration of same-sex marriage. At the time, Fauber had posted a Bible-based perspective on the issue, sharing thoughts from the Rev. Franklin Graham and other Christian leaders.
Earlier this year, Fauber’s social media posts became the subject of a complaint lodged with the Virginia Association of Realtors (VAR) over the purported violation of NAR’s code of ethics. Sylvester expressed disappointment that the VAR didn't dismiss the complaint as “frivolous,” but rather “issued a statement a few months afterward in April saying that if the allegations are true, then Wilson might have violated this new hate speech rule.”
The posts, which Fauber shared as part of his personal ministry, went unnoticed until two fellow realtors, who Fauber had never met, filed formal ethics complaints against him. The complaints alleged that his posts violated NAR’s vague "hate speech" rule. The VAR panel determined that Fauber’s views on marriage and sexuality, expressed through Bible verses and Christian doctrine, violated NAR’s Standard of Practice 10-5.
One of the two men who filed the original complaint with the VAR is reportedly an “openly gay man.” Complainants are not typically identified publicly in real estate ethics complaints.
Fauber’s attorney, Michael Sylvester, said they are “obviously disappointed” by the decision and are “considering all legal options.”
“The way the NAR rule is being applied, the message is simple: Bible-believing Christian realtors must be silent,” Sylvester added.
Victoria Cobb, president of The Family Foundation, of which FFLC is a part, called the decision “nothing short of anti-Christian bigotry in the real estate profession,” adding, “Wilson's punishment will have the effect of chilling the religious speech of over 1.5 million other realtors in the U.S."
In a Facebook post dated shortly after the panel’s decision, Fauber responded to the NAR policy, writing, “It is appropriate to not bring up one's 'religious' views while working with clients. It is altogether different when a minister cannot express his/her faith on their personal social media in the privacy of their home. The NAR policy is not limited to working with clients, it applies to the Realtors life 24/7! The cancel culture police are always watching!”
Fauber, an ordained minister, said the NAR policy potentially “also applies to any realtor reading certain scriptures in church!”
Under NAR's Standard of Practice 10-5, realtors “must not use harassing speech, hate speech, epithets, or slurs based on race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial status, national origin, sexual orientation, or gender identity.”
It's not clear whether NAR — America's largest trade group representing over 1.5 million members — officially deems the Bible to contain "hate speech" or whether members risk losing industry access if they publicly express their faith. CP reached out to both VAR and NAR for comment Friday. This story will be updated if a response is received.
In an interview earlier this month, Fauber told CBN he believes he’s being targeted by the “woke” NAR over their “involvement in endorsing and approving of” LGBT ideology, including their funding of a drag show in Charlottesville, Virginia, in November.
That event, titled “Inclusivity and Celebration: Fair Housing Symposium with Drag Show and Fireside Chat,” featured drag performers and offered attendees to “hear from a local [LGBT] activist” and help in “understanding the Stop Hate in Real Estate Pledge,” which lists the Charlottesville realtor association as a partner on its website.
According to a social media post from one attendee, the event included a "drag queen panel" on homeownership and "drag performances."
